Patty Berg

Berg, Patty (Patricia Jane Berg), 1918–2006, American golfer, b. Minneapolis, Minn. She was a leading amateur during the 1930s, winning 29 titles before turning professional in 1940. After serving in the Marines during World War II, she returned to golf and won the first U.S. Women's Open in 1946. In 1948 she was one of the founders of the Ladies' Professional Golf Association (LPGA) and served (1949–52) as its first president. Berg won more than 80 amateur and professional tournaments, including 15 major titles, the most of any woman golfer. The LPGA's top money winner in 1954, 1955, and 1957, she recorded the tour's lowest scoring average in 1953, 1955, and 1956. Berg was a charter inductee (1951) of the LPGA Hall of Fame and is also a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame.